Thursday, June 6, 2013

Life in the Fast Lane: Carlos Anchondo

One intern's unforgettable twenty-first

Cries of “Carloooos” filled the concrete halls of Coral
Towers’ fourteenth floor as several of the 2013 ASME interns greeted the
birthday boy. It took less than one week for a group of 33 complete strangers
to come together to celebrate a momentous day in a new friend's life.

Although Carlos Anchondo cannot say he celebrated his
twenty-first birthday surrounded by his closest college friends, he can say he
survived his first night out in the city that never sleeps: New York
City.

Some
might say it was luck that enabled him to snag the one ASME
internship placement that allowed him to sleep in the day after his
twenty-first. Sports Illustrated is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but
operates over the weekend, when Anchondo helps the staff cover the
weekend games. Unfortunately, this means Anchondo’s
Sundays are spent in the office rather than exploring the city with his
peers--a small price to pay for every sports lover's dream job.

“Touring the office the other day was really exciting, to
just be there and see the sports writers and talk to them,” said Anchondo after
his first visit to the Time & Life Building. He was most shocked by how
relaxed the atmosphere was.He wasn't
expecting the casual joking and “What’s up bro?”.Anchondo says one of his greatest concerns is trying to learn all there is to know about sports. Although he describes himself as
an avid sports fan and athlete, preparing for an internship at one of the most
trusted sports sources is daunting--even for a college athlete.

Anchondo’s best
friend and roommate, Caleb Franzmann, said his fellow fraternity brother is heavily
involved in student life at Trinity University in San Antonio. “When we are walking around I
don’t know half the people he is talking to,” said Franzmann. “He gives
everyone a chance.”

At Trinity, Anchondo runs on both the cross-country and
track and field teams, while immersing himself in the San Antonio culture of Mexican food, Spurs
basketball, and Texas rodeo. While he might not be your typical cowboy hat wearin’,
Texas twang speakin’ native, he won't hesitate to admit that he owns a pair of cowboy boots that has shown up a time or two at the occasional country-western dance.

“I like to think of Texas people as really welcoming
people,” said Anchondo of his home state. Born in Rome, Italy, Anchondo moved
to Lockhart, Texas, with his family before his fourth birthday. Celebrating his
big day without the people closest to him was not how Anchondo had originally
imagined his twenty-first birthday.

“That’s the only bummer, that all my Texas friends are not
here. But we will celebrate twice,” said Anchondo. Franzmann said his close
friend helped plan his own twenty-first birthday and that he was very disappointed he
could not return the favor. But with a year still left together at Trinity,
Franzmann said, “There are plenty of good times to come.”

Overall, Anchondo said his
birthday was a success. “I think a birthday party is good when everyone is having
fun, not just the birthday person, and I think everyone was enjoying
themselves,” said Anchondo the day after his night out.

As a drunken version of Texas’ state song poured from
Carlos’ lips, it was clear that his new ASME friends had made his night out one to
remember. “Texas, our Texas! All hail the mighty state!”